Hand-hole plate for boilers



(No Model.)

B. P. ROBINSON.

HAND HOLE PLATE FOR BOILERS.

No. 455,358. Patented July 7, 1891.

'' NiTlED' STATES PATENT I OFFICE.

EDYVARD ROBINSON, OF SOMERVILLE, MASSACHUSETTS.

HAND-HOLE PLATE FOR BOILERS.

SPEQIFIGATIQN forming part of Letters Patent No. 455,358, dated July 7,1891.

Application filed August 23, 1889. Serial No. 321,798. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ED ARD P. ROBINSON, of Somerville, county ofMiddlcsex, State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement inHand-Hole Plates for Boilers, of which the following description, inconnection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, likeletters on the drawings representing like parts. 7

My invention relates to a hand-hole plate or cap, such as used onsteam-boilers, the object of the invention being to produce a moreconvenient and durable means for fastening the plate than thoseheretofore used, and also to reduce the cost.

While the invention is described as embodied in a plate or cover for ahand-hole, it is obvious that the same construct-ion might be applied toa man-hole, or in any case where a removable cover for a hole or openingin a boiler or similar appliance is required.

Prior to this invention the plate or cover used in connection with ahand-hole is arranged to overlap and bear upon the metal around theedges of the opening at the inside of the boiler, and has been providedwith ashank either madeintegral or otherwise connected with said plate,which extends out through the opening in the boiler and also through ayoke, spider, or leg-plate, which bears upon the outside of the boiler,the said shank being secured to said yoke by a nut or key, and said yokebearing directly against the boiler-plate and being necessarilyindependent of and detachable from the handhole plate proper.

In accordance with the present invention the plate or cover has madeintegral or securely connected with it a cross-piece that stands outsidethe boiler when the plate is in position in the hole at the inside ofthe boiler, said cross-piece and plate being connected by l a shank thatpasses through the hole, and the entire device being made, if desired,in a single piece either by casting or forging. The ends of thecross-bar overhang the boilerplate around the edges of the hole and areat some distance from the outer face of the boiler, and the whole deviceis securely retained 5c in position by means of keys or wedges drivenbetween the outer surface of the boiler and,

ly shown in Figs. 1 and 2.

the overhanging ends of the cross-piece to the hand-hole plate.

Figure 1 is a plan view of a hand-hole plate embodying this invention;Fig. 2, a side elevation thereof; Fig. 3, a longitudinal section showingthe plate fastened in position in the boiler-plate; and Fig. at an endelevation of the hand-hole plate and its fastening-key, showing a slightmodification in the shape of the forging or casting.

The hand-hole plate forming the subject of this invention comprises theplate, cap, or cover proper a, which is of thcusual oval shape to fitwithin the opening in the boilerplate b, (see Fig. 3,) said plate ahaving made integralor otherwise connected with it a shank a andcross-piece o which is preferably somewhat longer and also somewhatnarrower than the hand-hole plate a, as clear- The shank a is longenough and narrow enough to admit of the plate a being passed throughthe opening in the boiler 19 by turning the said plate .a, so that itsshorter axis passes through the longer axis of the hole and then turningthe said plate into substantial coincidence with the hole, the platehaving the usual flange a,

"that fits within the hole while the portion a around the flange a seatsagainst the inner face of theboiler-plate around the edge of the openingor against a suitable gasket or washer interposed between it and theboilerplate in the usual manner.

In order to admit of the insertion of the plate Ct into the hole, asjust described, the shank a is of such length that the cross-piece astands at some distance from the outer surface of the boiler-plate Z),when the hand-hole plate is properly seated in the opening, and the saidplate is drawn tightly to its seat and the entire device securelyfastened by means of keys or wedges c, driven between the boiler-plateand the overhanging ends of the cross-piece a This affordsa veryconvenient and at the same time secure means for fastening the plate,and the entire device is simple, compact, and inexpensive, and may beused anywhere thata removable cover of this nature is required. It isespecially useful for the hand-hole plates that are made in or near thefire-box of a boiler for .the

reason that the entire plate and its cross-bar may be in an integralpiece and being exposed to the Water inside the boiler is keptcomparatively cool by the conduction ofthe heat, and the wedges 0, alsolying directly against the boiler-plates are also kept comparativelycool, so that the entire device is well protected from injury by heat orburning, While with the ordinary mode of using an independent yoke orcross-piece with a fastening nut or wedge at the inside of the latterthe fastening parts soon become burned as they are directly exposed tothe heat of the fire and are at some distance from the water-cooledsurface.

If desired, theends of the cross-piece a may be recessed to form seats,as indicated in dotted lines at a, in Fig. 2, and as shown in Fig. 4,which represents substantially the same device, but of somewhat lighterconstruction, the cross bar and connecting -shank being shaped to giveincrease of strength with less amount of material than in theconstruction shown in the other figures.

It is not essential that the cross piece, shank, and plate should bemade in a single integral piece, although such construction is generallythe best, the essential feature being that these parts are permanentlyconnected together instead of being connected in the act of attachingthe plate to the boiler, and the fastening devices act between thecrossbar and the boiler instead of between the crossbar and the shankconnected with the hand-hole plate, as is usually the case. It also isnot essential that wedges should be used as the fastening device. Insome cases, especially where the fastening of the plate is not exposedto the fire, other forms of fastening device may be preferred, as forexample, the screws represented in dotted lines at 0 Fig. 2.

I claim- 1. A hand-hole plate or similar cover having a cross-barconnected with it by a shank, whereby the said cross-bar stands at theoutside of the boiler-plate, while the hand-hole plate, combined withfastenings interposed between the end portions of said cross-bar and theboiler-plate, is seated insaid boiler-plate, substantially as described.v

2. A hand-hole plate or similar cover and cross-bar connected with it bya shank longer than the thickness of the boiler-plate, the

said cross-bar being longer than the plate below it, and thusoverhanging the boiler-plate, combined with fastening-wedges interposedbetween the overhanging ends of said crossbar and the boiler-plate,substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing Witnesses.

EDVARD P. ROBINSON.

